CGEP NEWS AND EVENTS

Sep 11, 2007

Deportation of Nawaz Sharif is a threat to Constitutional Rule and National Sovereignty; clouds the prospects of free and fair election

Islamabad, Sept 11; The Citizens Group on Electoral Process – CGEP has expressed a deep sense of alarm on the administrative and political developments leading to the deportation of Former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to Saudi Arabia on September 10. The Group met in Islamabad to consider the impact of recent developments on the prospects of free and fair elections in Pakistan.

The Group, which includes eminent Pakistanis from such diverse fields as judiciary, law, media and academia, etc., views this as a clear violation of the letter and spirit of the Constitution of Pakistan and the judgment of the Supreme Court. This, the Group felt, has seriously undermined the prospects for the holding of fair and free elections because it seeks to remove from the scene the leader of a mainstream political party and amounts to throttling the democratic process.

One regrettable dimension of this episode is the growing role of foreign powers in Pakistan’s domestic affairs. This has caused damage to the concept of state sovereignty, the Group opined. It is a matter of concern that the Government and its political affiliates appear to have adopted a confrontational stance towards Superior Judiciary. Corresponding to the deportation of Mr. Nawaz Sharif, the Group noted that an unruly crowd, led by the leaders of a political party, almost besieged the Sindh High Court in Karachi on the same day. This made it impossible for the court to continue its proceedings on the unfortunate incidents of May 12 in Karachi.

Attempts to terrorize the judiciary were also underlined by the assassination of a senior lawyer Raja Riaz in Karachi also in the vicinity of the High Court. Raja Riaz was associated with the movement for the restoration of the Chief Justice.

As a sequel to its earlier observation, the Group cautioned that while dealing with constitutional and legal issues that relate to the events of September 10, including the court’s power to restore status quo ante to summon Mr. Nawaz Sharif, the superior judiciary may not be distracted from more vital constitutional and election issues that are currently pending before the courts.

The Citizens Group on Electoral Process is facilitated by PILDAT and has been working since December 2006 to indigenously monitor the process leading up to General Election. The members of the Group attending and resolving the above included Justice (Retd.) Wajih-ud-Din Ahmed, Former Judge, Supreme Court of Pakistan; Lt. Gen. (Retd.) Asad Durrani, Former Director General, ISI / MI; Mr. Ghazi Salahuddin, Political Analyst; Dr. Hasan-Askari Rizvi, Political & Defence Analyst; Dr. Ijaz Shafi Gilani, Chairman, Gallup Pakistan; Lt. Gen. (Retd.) Moinuddin Haider, Former Governor Sindh and Former Interior Minister; Mr. Mujib-ur-Rehman Shami, Senior Journalist; Justice (Retd.) Nasira Iqbal, Former Judge, Lahore High Court; Mr. Shafqat Mahmood, Former Senator and Minister; Mr. Shahid Hamid, Former Governor Punjab; Mr. Talat Hussain, Director Current Affairs, Aaj TV; Mr. Ahmed Bilal Mehboob and Ms. Aasiya Riaz, Executive Director and Joint Director of PILDAT respectively.

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